


Unfinished drafts of Chasing/Running

by sunswathe



Series: chasing/running and all things related [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, posting it because there ARE parts that i like, this is the first draft of my other fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:01:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26209888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunswathe/pseuds/sunswathe
Summary: the first draft of a modern soulmates AU in which Keith doesn't want any soulmates but he gets lots. it went through LOTS of changes before it became something i liked most everything of.THIS IS AN UNFINISHED WORK. IF YOU WANT A FINISHED ONE, LOOK TO THE OTHER PARTS OF THE SERIES.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Series: chasing/running and all things related [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1903444
Kudos: 4





	1. the original draft™

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this way back in september of 2017
> 
> i was going through all my drafts and i realized that i've written so much for this soulmate au, and its changed so much from what i first had planned. obviously it has the same premise, but the way i settled on writing it is so much different.
> 
> i remember being really proud of this when i first wrote it, before i REALLY started developing a style that was a bit more... recognizable? unique? there are parts of this that i took word for word and put into the newer version that really influenced the tone of the fic from then on, and even though there are a lot of errors bot gramatically and plotwise, this was a great jumping board for me to use to get a more refined chasing/running, so i don't think there are any spoilers? i dunno, chasing/running has a plot i GUESS but its very... predictable lmao. anyway!
> 
> I'm throwing this onto ao3 because i'm hoping it'll get me going on finishing the second chapter. ive been cranking it out for the last couple days and its _so close!_
> 
> so! please enjoy if you decide to read!

A soulbond is formed once you have skin-to-skin contact with someone. 

Keith doesn't touch anyone.

He covers his arms, his hands, every patch of skin he can hide, he does. He doesn't touch anyone with uncovered hands, avoids large crowds if he can. Keith doesn't need anyone. He doesn't need to trust anyone. Not if he can keep his distance, keep his soulmarks small and colorless. Keep his control.

Soulbonds, familial, platonic, or romantic, just complicate everything. 

When your soulmates touch you, it just clicks. Now you feel whole. Now you have someone who makes you wonder just how you had lived without them. It doesn't happen immediately. But something just feels right when you touch your soulmate. Like a puzzle piece snapping into place in your brain. You just know. You don't even have to watch the colors take shape on your body to know that you've found them. You just know.

Or so Keith's been told. 

He doesn't know. 

Because he's been alive and living his life for eighteen long years and he hasn't found the owners of the marks on his arm. He doesn't know. And he never plans to know. The small, black dots on the underside of his forearm will never take shape or bloom with color. They will remain forever black, will never grow into anything larger than a dime.

Keith wants them to grow. He does, he really, really, does. But he has his reasons for warding others away. So, small and black they will remain.

__________

Hands carded through thick, black hair, a quiet voice humming a mindless song. This was normal. Sitting somewhere in the private campgrounds (that they certainly had no permission to be in, not that they cared) with a small fire crackling in front of them. Keith could feel the warmth of his mother's study frame seeping into his back as he sat comfortably between her outstretched legs. The night was cool, a small breeze blowing and the constant drone of insects in the forest beside them. Keith could see the reflection of him and his mother in the large silver truck parked in the clearing across from the pair.

Diana Kogane had the same pale skin and the same dark hair cascading over her shoulders as her son. She had a delicate yet strong body, broader shoulders than most women. Her aura was one that screamed of independence and adventure. She was a wild spirit. No one could tame the fire in she had in her eyes, the same fire Keith had inherited.

The gentle humming coming from behind the small boy slowly faded out, and mother and son sat in a peaceful quiet. Keith continued watching his mother comb through his hair in the reflection, his eyes settling on her collarbone, where he could see swooping colors emerging from beneath her shirt. 

“Tell me about dad?” Soft words penetrated the night, filled with a the innocence and curiosity only a five year old could possess.

Keith felt the moment his mother tensed behind him, her fingers stilling a fraction at her intake of breath. Sighing, she quickly resumed in her ministrations, this time with only one hand. The other one reached to touch her soulmark. 

“Your father,” she whispered, “was the most handsome man I had the pleasure of meeting, Keith.” 

“How did you meet?” Keith dared to ask. He's tried before. She's never told him. The only information Keith could glean from his mother was that his father was handsome. But he'll try, as many times as it takes.

Her breath hitches again, this time when she tenses she doesn't relax for a long while. “How we met isn't important.” She gave the same stilted reply she always used. There was more this time. “He really isn't important either, Keith.” The ravenette furrowed his brows, thinking.

“What do you mean?” Keith's words became more confused as he continued, “He was your soulmate. That's super important,” he paused, “...right?”

His mother chuckled. It didn't sound right. It sounded sad.

“It feels like it is, Keith. Relationships are hard though. Some just don't - can't - work.”

“Even soulmates?”

“Yeah. Even soulmates.”

It was quiet. Uncomfortably so.

“Mom?” 

She hummed in acknowledgment.

“Did you love him?”

Another dry laugh. “Yes. Sometimes I think too much.”

Keith hoped she might elaborate without more prodding. She didn't. 

“...Did he love you?”

Quiet.

“Keith?” Keith looked his mother in the eye at his name. “Soulmarks make everything harder. They aren't everything. That make sense?”

It didn't. Not yet.

Keith nodded anyway.

__________

It wasn't even a year later that Diana Kogane died chasing the stars, and running from her soulmarks.

Keith wishes he could cut the violet flowers and constellations painted permanently into the skin of his left side off. Remove the soulmark he's had since he had been born. Forget.

He doesn't.

He can't.

__________

It's completely unsurprising when Keith goes to University of Altea majoring in astrophysics (he was born with a love of the stars deep in his bones, he tried to ignore it. It didn't work). He's got a job at a local bar and grill, not that he really needs it with the money his mother left him. It's the first day of classes and Keith had some advanced math course required for his major at eleven o'clock.

It's seventy degrees out and he's walking to the building with a large red hoodie, dark jeans, boots, and fingerless gloves (he had tried wearing ordinary gloves but it made everyday activities slightly more difficult than they should be, so fingerless it had to be.) The sun beat down on him and he was getting some strange looks but he ignored them. He was used to odd looks.

The slightly older building he walked up to had large double doors he pushed open before walking to the first room he saw. Strolling into his class, he casually scanned the room for a seat that could separate himself from the others in the class, and avoid anyone coming too close if he could. Tables and seats sat around the board in the front of the lecture hall, steadily inclining so each seat could see said board. Keith made his way to the far left side of the room and sat in the highest seat in the corner. Class wasn't supposed to start for another twenty minutes or so, so he leaned back in his seat and popped in some earbuds.

Keith simply sat and watched everyone enter the room, observing from afar, hoping he gave off a great big “fuck off” vibe to anyone who might want to come close. Assuming he was doing a fine job of that as he saw other students warily glance at him every once in awhile, he allowed himself to close his eyes and just absorb his music. That is until a large thump on the table right next to him makes him jump in his chair.

Yanking out one of his earbuds, he turned and glared at the person who had unceremoniously dropped their bag next to him. He was slightly taken aback when who he saw looked about twelve. His surprise must have registered slightly on his face because the small person next to him snorted and rolled their hazel eyes before sticking out their hand to shake. 

“Katie Holt, call me Pidge. I'm seventeen, skipped a grade.” Keith pointedly ignored her extended hand and simply replied with a gruff “Keith.”

Pidge laughed at that, earning an eyebrow raise from Keith. She shook her head as she replied. “You seemed like the broody emo type but you're really killing it with those fantastic manners.”

Keith simply shrugged. “Not a people person.”

The blonde nodded, pushing the circular glasses sitting on her nose back into place after they fell. “I completely understand. I could live happily forever with only the company of computers.” She said wistfully. Keith snorted. Fully prepared to pop his earbud back in, Keith paused when he noticed Pidge was still staring at him, eyes calculating. Their eyes locked for a moment, Keith silently asking why she was staring at him.

“What's with the hot getup? It's like seventy today, dude.” She said after a few beats.

Keith shrugged again. “Don't like people touching me.” He said calmly, watching as the implications of that sunk in. People always judged him for it. I'm running from my soulmates, is what it told them. I'm a coward, it said.

Pidge had opened her mouth to reply when a call from the from of the class caught both of their attention. “I'm professor Thace,” a tall man at the head of the room began, and all conversation was temporarily halted.

Keith was fine with that.

The introduction to the class had been simple, Professor Thace going over the syllabus. Class was let out about twenty minutes early. Keith snatched up his bag and stood up, stopping when he felt a tug at his sweatshirt sleeve, carefully placed away from any bare skin.

Glancing over at Pidge, Keith gave her a questioning look. 

“Want to head to the cafeteria with me?” She said after a moment. Keith must have looked even more confused at that because she sighed and began to elaborate. “You seem like an interesting guy. I wanna talk more if that's cool?”

The look Keith adopted now was more surprise than anything, no one really bothered with him, not after he establishes a distance between anyone he meets. Pidge is one of the first to not bring up his aversion to touch immediately after they learn of it. Rather than bringing up the topic right after class, she tugged his sweatshirt, away from his skin rather than carelessly grabbing him. He might be mostly covered but he appreciates the care she had put into the gesture, already taking his earlier statement in stride. Keith gives her a small quirk of his lips when he agrees and motions for her to go ahead of him. 

They're the last two to leave the room, which Keith is fine with. That makes everything a bit easier for him. Their walk is filled with the slightly awkward tension that comes with just meeting someone, but it's not really unpleasant. After a few moments Pidge breaks the silence, asking about his major and his classes. They make small talk about them and Keith discovers that Pidge is majoring in technological engineering with a minor in biology (she loves technology and nature, she'd said.)

It doesn't take them very long to walk to the cafeteria, chattering a bit as they do.

When they do get there, Keith pales a bit at the amount of people there. Pidge doesn't comment on it, but Keith's pretty sure she noticed because she grabs his arm with a quick look at his face to gauge his reaction and pulls him swiftly through the small amount of people. Feeling a bit less worried now, Keith and Pidge make their way to the line of food on the other end of the cafeteria. Pidge gets pepperoni pizza and a small salad, while Keith gets a sandwich and some chips. They pay with their meal plans before looking for a place to sit. The small talk they had going continued as they wandered to an empty table.

Once they reached it, Pidge spoke again. “You staying in a dorm?”

“Yeah. Arus.” 

Pidge deflated a bit. “I'm in Olkarion. That sucks, you're the only person I've talked to.” 

Keith narrowed his eyes. “I'm the only one you've talked to?” The blonde offered a hum by way of answering, considering she just stuffed half a slice of pizza in her mouth. Keith took a bite of his sandwich and waited for her to fully reply.

“Well, not really the only one, just the only one who I've tried to get to know. It is only the first day, and I'm certain you wouldn't have even talked to me if I hadn't approached you.” Brows furrowed, Keith opened his mouth to argue (she was right but he didn't want to admit it) but she continued, “I do have friends who go here too though. My buddies Lance and Hunk are freshmen too, and a close family friend is a TA this year. But all three of them live off campus, Lance and Hunk have their own apartment and Shiro is living with my brother.”

Keith just nodded to signal he'd been listening. They ate quietly for a bit, it didn't last very long before Pidge asked, “What about you?” Confusion must have been clear on his face because Pidge grumbled and added, “Got any friends, family?”

Stiffening, Keith placed his hand on his side.“No. I don't.”

Pidge didn't prod him about it. Instead, she started telling Keith about the robot she's currently working on. He was incredibly grateful for the subject change.

__________

You have a certain amount of soulmates destined for you. Usually it's only three or four, and they're usually all different types of bonds. 

Familial soulbonds take the form of marks anywhere on your stomach and lower back. They start out as a small black dot, about the size of a dime, as with any other soulmark. Sometimes when children are born they'll have an incredible connection with their mothers, and will have a fully formed soulmark from the day they are born. Others will have beautiful colors paint their skin when they touch their father, or when younger siblings are born and they touch for the first time, they'll share marks. Even adopted children. When they meet their new parents, marks will bloom and they'll know they have a family.

Platonic bonds are soulmates who are destined to be your friend, someone you can tell everything to. People always have at least one platonic bond, even if they have no familial or romantic soulmates. Platonics are the easiest bonds to find. They're the easiest ones to nurture and let grow. Platonic soulmarks appear on your arms and hands. Often times platonic bonds will lead to a romantic relationship.

Romantic soulmarks appear anywhere on someone's chest and neck area. Most people have only one romantic soulmate, some will occasionally have more. You could live your entire life without ever meeting your romantic soulmate. Romantic soulmates are the people who could potentially have the best relationship with you, but they aren't destined to meet. Romantic soulmates are hard to come by, even if you do find them, the relationship might not work out.

All soulmarks relate to the owner of the mark, and the marks of soulmates will be in the same place, even if they aren't the same. They mostly have plants and flowers, but other symbols or things could be in them as well.

When someone touches a soulmark, their soulmate can feel their emotions through their bond. 

If a soulmate dies, the bond feels empty when a soul mark is touched.

__________

Keith has two platonics, both of which are on his right arm. One of the black dots is on the underside of his wrist, about two inches from his hand. The other is in the middle of his forearm, also on the underside. He knows he's going to meet his platonics. He doesn't want to, and he can try to avoid it, but it'll happen.

He's not going to get attached to them. 

It'll hurt too much when they inevitably go.

__________

After lunch with Pidge, Keith didn't have any more classes for the day and headed to his dorm. Pidge had a biology class later in the afternoon, so they went their separate ways. The walk to the Arus dorm building is only about five minutes from the cafeteria, so it doesn't take long until Keith is sliding into the elevator and going to the third floor.

His room is a single, he'd specifically requested one saying that other people make him uncomfortable, which isn't a lie by any means but “running from your soulmates” isn't a valid reason. 

As he walks in he drops his bag on the floor, and immediately takes to stripping off his warm clothes. He throws his sweatshirt on his bed, and leaves his boots by the entrance. Sliding his gloves off, he flops down onto his mattress with a sigh of relief.

He's been livin here for about a week so everything here feels comfortable. It doesn't feel like anything other than his space, which he really needed.

Keith really doesn't have much to do. He has no more classes for the day, he doesn't work until the weekend, and no one to spend time with, so he does what he usually does on days like this and pulls out a sketchbook. Being alone for a lot of his life, Keith had developed a hobby for drawing. It was something consistent as he was tossed from foster home to foster home. He doesn't do much, mostly draws flowers and other landscapes. There are some sketches of the soulmark on his side here and there, but that usually dredges up too many sad memories. There are other doodles of people that Keith's met in his life.

Spending the next few hours absentmindedly sketching, Keith isn't really surprised when he finds himself trying to draw Pidge from memory. It's something he does once he meets new people. Something he does because he doesn't expect to get close to them. Doesn't think he'll be anything more to them than a blip in their memory. 

Keith's had friends before. He's often times ended up at least brushing hands with some people in his past, it can't be avoided really. None of them had turned out to be soulmates though, and those friendships were easier after he knew. However, having friends doesn't mean being too exceptionally close to them. There are names in his phone he'll probably never talk to again, people he used to chat with who he'll never think of in depth. Most people are surprised to find that he doesn't mind being alone. They look at him and see a sad little orphan boy with trust issues, but it's not a matter of trust really. It's a matter of how much it hurts to lose someone you care too much about. So he just doesn't let himself care about others to avoid the pain. 

It's nearing about three o'clock when Keith hears a large rap on his door. He silently groans and he sets down his pencil and pad. Deciding he should probably just answer the door, he forgoes his sweatshirt and gloves. Creeping to the door and carefully opening it as to shield himself from whoever it might be, he's vaguely surprised when he sees Pidge.

“How did you find out my room number?” He says after a moment of staring.

Pidge shrugs. “I knocked on every door in Arus and waited for people to answer. If it wasn't you I just walked away.”

Keith snorted and carefully came out from behind his door, leaning against the frame with his arms crossed as he looked at Pidge. Her eyes flicked to the barely visible black dot on his wrist.

“Did you need something?” Keith asks. After the blonde has been observing him for an almost awkward amount of time. Pidge shrugs again. “Not really, but I figured you'd be bored since you keep to yourself.”

She pulls out her phone. “But since I'm here wanna exchange numbers for class?” Keith has a feeling that's part of the reason she showed up here. Keith looks at the offered phone before carefully reaching out to grab it without brushing her fingers. He's again grateful when Pidge doesn't mention it. After typing in his number he hands it back to Pidge.

“That all you wanted?” He asks. Pidge shakes her head. “I came to ask if you wanted to come hang out with me and my friends at a coffee shop just s off campus. You don't have to come if you don't want but I thought, maybe…” she trailed off awkwardly. Keith hesitated for a second before promptly walking back into his room, leaving the door open, and grabbed his hoodie and gloves. Tossing it over his head he put on his sweatshirt and then pulled his fingerless gloves on. He toed on his boots and grabbed a drawstring bag, tossing his sketchbook, his phone and wallet, and some pencils into it. 

Walking into the hall Keith locked his room and nodded at Pidge to lead the way. She let out a small breath of relief and started talking. 

“We're gonna be meeting Lance and Hunk at a Starbucks just off campus. I'll send Lance a text saying you don't like to be touched because he practically jumps on anyone he's never met.” She said, already pressing send on a message.

“Thanks.” Is Keith's simple reply. Pidge then begins to ramble a bit as they step outside the dorm, mostly about her soulmates. “I have three soulmates right now, two are platonic and the other one is Matt, my brother.” Her brother, Matt, apparently works at the Starbucks they're going to part-time. He's currently going to grad school for biochemical engineering, and works full time in some of the university's labs.

Keith interrupts a story about how she had met Lance and Hunk, her platonics, to talk, “You said you only have three soulmates right now? Do you have a romantic you haven't met before or something?”

“Nope.” She says, popping the ‘p’. “I have a third platonic who I haven't met yet.” She glanced at Keith strangely from the corner of her eye after she said that.

“No romantic? Surprising.” It's not very common for someone to just not have a perfect person for them somewhere in the world. Most people have a romantic soulmate, even if they never do meet.

By this point of their conversation, they've just walked off campus and into a small downtown area. Pidge scoffs. “I think you mean lucky. I'm aro-ace, so I'm glad I don't have to turn down a poor sap who was told I was perfect for them.”

A laugh finds it's way out of Keith's mouth at that. “I can understand that.” He says.

It's quiet and Pidge is still looking at him with that weird, thoughtful expression.

“Whose mark is on your hand?” Keith after he notices the large sunflower on the back of her left hand. “Hunk’s.” She says. “Lances is on my right shoulder.” She moves the collar of her shirt enough to show some of the blue mark.

Conversation lapses into a comfortable silence as they near the cafe. Crossing an intersection the find themselves opening the doors to Starbucks and meandering in. 

Pidge makes a beeline to the right of the door towards a booth with two darker-skinned guys sitting in it. They both look up and break into smiles when they notice her going closer.

“Pidge!”

“It's the gremlin!”

The bigger of the two, he has dark skin and even darker hair, and could probably bench press three times Keith's weight, reaches a hand over and gently smacks the other guy. “You haven't seen her in a month! And the first thing you do is call her a gremlin!”

Keith looks over at the other and drinks him in. He has caramel skin, white teeth that contrast nicely with his skin tone. His eyes are so incredibly blue, Keith could drown in them. The smirk on his face looks mischievous and it's very attractive.

He scoffs loudly at the other. “Of course, Hunk. It's what you gotta do, man.”

Pidge smacks him much forcefully than Hunk did and probably-Lance let's out a squawk. “Hey!”

“It's what you get, beanpole.” Pidge shrugged.

Keith's still awkwardly hanging back for a moment as they start to chatter, until Hunk notices him. 

“Oh! Pidge, is that your new buddy?” 

Suddenly all three of them are looking at him and Keith feels a bit uncomfortable. Pidge nods and waves Keith a bit closer. “Keith! These two are Hunk and Lance.” Pidge points to them individually. Keith steps up next to Pidge feeling a bit uncomfortable. Why he'd decided to tag along with someone he'd just met that day is beyond him.

“Aren't those clothes a bit warm, dude?”

Keith glances at Lance, who's currently staring in disbelief at the hoodie and jeans he's currently sporting. Opening his mouth to respond, Keith gets cut off by Pidge. “He doesn't like getting touched. I literally messaged both of you telling you that, Lance.”

Lance himself was wearing a tank top and shorts, his tank top was white with purple, blue, and pink words that said “gettin’ bi” in loopy script. It showed off the two soulmarks on his arms, just below each shoulder. One was a large sunflower, probably Hunk’s, and the other a circular succulent with pointed leaves, probably Pidge’s. 

Lance’s brows furrow. “Why's that, Mullet?” Keith's eyes go wide, and he stiffens defensively. “Mullet?”

“Just ignore him, talk to Hunk, Hunk is well behaved.” Pidge grumbles, nudging Keith's covered shoulder before shooting a glare at Lance. 

Hunk holds his hand out to shake, “Nice to meet you buddy!” Keith stares at his hand, Pidge slaps her forehead. Hunk realizes. “Oh! Sorry, that's just a habit!” He pulls his hand back and settles it awkwardly on the table.

Pidge just sighs and tugs Keith's sleeve as she walks to the ordering counter. 

“Sorry about both of them. They're pretty touch-based people. Hunk just likes contact and Lance doesn't understand anyone who doesn't want soulmates.” Keith shakes his head and waves it off. “They weren't trying to be rude. It's fine.” he says.

Shoulders visibly relaxing, she steps up to the counter and orders a black coffee, pays, and waits as Keith steps up and just orders a strawberry smoothie. He slides his money on the counter and waits for the server to set down his cup before he grabs it.

When they get back to the table, Lance is sitting next to Hunk. “We figured since you know Pidge a bit better than us you'd like to sit with her. Because, well, y'know…” Hunk trails off sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. The big man relaxes when Keith gives him a small, but genuine smile. The trio around Keith seem to have an incredibly strong bond with one another, they seamlessly begin chatting about anything and everything with ease. This leaves Keith sitting awkwardly and just kind of, existing. Keith notices lance glancing at him through the corner of his eye a few times, and he doesn't think much of it.

Until he finally does something anyway.

Pidge is in the middle of downing her cup of black coffee like her life depends on it when suddenly Lance slams his hands down on the table. Hunk slams his head into the wall in his surprise, Pidge spits some coffee down her front, and Keith manages to barely jolt in his chair. All three of them stare wide eyed at Lance, who suddenly has a rather determined spark in his eyes as he leans close to the tabletop, palms still down.

“I'm assuming you're gonna be spending a lot of time with us, Mullet-”

Keith interjects, “I don't even have a-”

“-So we need to get to know you. Now, this is the most important question I will ask you.” Lance has a deadly look in his eye, Pidge and Hunk are both staring apprehensively at him. Keith is kind of nervous if he's being honest.

“What. Is. Your.” He pauses. “Hogwarts house?”

It's quiet for a few moments before Pidge and Hunk burst out laughing at the look of unadulterated confusion on Keith's face. Eyes narrowing, Keith stares down Lance. “That's the most important question?” His voice gets higher in pitch near the end of his question. The tan boy just nods solemnly.

Scoffing, Keith grabs his smoothie before responding, “Gryffindor,” then promptly sucking as much of his drink up as calmly as possible.

Lance groans. 

“You'll find another Ravenclaw someday, buddy.” Hunk says in a patronizing tone as he pats Lance’s back.

He just groans more loudly this time. 

“Get over it Lance no one likes the nerd house.” Pidge grumbles. She turns to Keith. “I'm a Slytherin, Hunk’s a Hufflepuff, and Lance is a Ravenclaw. Lance is salty because he's never found another Ravenclaw.”

“I can't be the only one!” Lance loudly proclaims, raising a fist. “It's only a matter of time!”

“How the hell are you a Ravenclaw? You seem more like a Gryffindor.” Keith asks, the underlying question to learn more about Lance doesn't go unnoticed.

Lance lifts up from the pity party he'd been having on the table to shoot Keith a cocky grin. “I'll have you know I'm very smart, Mullet!”

He looks proud of himself as he keeps talking. “I'm majoring in marine biology and astrophysics, I couldn't decide which course I wanted to take so I chose both. I've always been near the top of my class and I'm going to University of Altea completely on scholarship.” Keith let's out a low whistle at that. 

“Nice job, then.” 

Lance starts to look sheepish. “Thanks.”

From that point on Keith is an integral part of the conversation. He learns that Hunk is majoring in mechanical engineering, and is actually helping Pidge on her robot project. All Keith got from that conversation is that their robot, Rover, is going to have an impressive AI, and that thought is slightly concerning. 

The others learn a little about Keith, like his major and some small tidbits about him. He never really stated it but he's well aware that the others understand that he's an orphan based on the not-so-subtle hints he dropped. Keith learns a few things too, like the fact that Hunk loves to cook, Lance has two moms, and Pidge made a laptop more powerful than anyone can buy out of sheer spite.

He talks about temporary friends he's had at some point, causing Hunk to interrupt for the first time. “Y'know man, if you want to stick around we won't complain. Like, you're really cool and you mesh with the three of us really well, and well, that's like really cool because not a lot of people can keep up with us.” Hunk shrugs. “It's obviously up to you!” He adds quickly.

Pidge is giving him one of her calculating looks again, and Lance looks like he's trying to get a read on Keith too. 

It really surprises Keith that Hunk so openly addressed something he was sort of worried about. It makes him feel more comfortable with any group of people he's been with in a long time.

Keith realized he was sort of just quietly staring at Hunk, and the latter was getting a bit fidgety. Shaking his head, Keith spoke a little too loudly. “Yeah,” he coughs for a second, “Yeah that'd be cool. To stick around, I mean.”

The group all give him broad smiles, and for once he doesn't find it difficult to smile back.

__________

There's one black dot on Keith's right hip that's always boggled his mind. It was a familial soulmark. He hasn't met the owner yet, but whoever could it really be? 

His grandparents ignored him from the second their twenty year old daughter brought home a baby, his father long gone.

He was never adopted.

So a mystery the black soulmark on his right side was. He wasn't sure what it could mean, and he's never gotten his hopes up.

In his first astronomy class he meets the TA, Takashi “Shiro” Shirogane. He'd seen pictures of his father after his mom died. Shiro looks almost identical to him. He thinks he knows who the familial soulmark on his side belongs to now.

It's probably a fluke.

It'd be better that way anyhow.

__________

It's been about a month since Keith met the others. He's surprised at how easily he gets along with them.

(It feels like he's had a click.

None of them have had skin-to-skin contact, though, Keith checks his marks everyday and they've not grown. 

That's good. He can still separate from them, even if it might be terrible.)

The day after the coffee shop meeting, he went out and bought skin-tight gloves that could cover his fingers. It makes having friends you actually want to see easier.

They all notice but they don't comment. He appreciates that.

Lance is in some of his classes since his second major is in astrophysics, so they sit next to each other and do group projects together. Keith doesn't share any classes with Hunk, and only the math class with Pidge.

He's not sure if Lance realizes he's noticed his careful looks, but Keith won't say anything if Lance won't. All three of his friends will just, stare at him, thoughtfully, from time to time. He's willing to bet they've all come to the same conclusion as him. At least two of them are his soulmates. Maybe all three of them if one of them is his romantic.

They don't say anything.

Neither does he.

__________

“Hey, Mullet.” Keith pointedly ignores the toe prodding his shoulder. 

“Keith.”

He flips a page. 

“Keeeeeeith.”

Jots down a note. 

“Keeeeeeeeeeith. Mullet. Buddy. Pal. Amigo.”

Keith glowers at the caramel foot poking his shoulder still.

“It's a Saturday. We've been studying for almost five hours. We need to be done.” Lance gets each point across with a jab to his arm with the offending foot.

“This upcoming test isn't even gonna be that bad, dude.” It really isn't.

The headache Keith had been ignoring for about an hour starts to rise again now that he's stopped concentrating. A sigh. “Fine. What do you have in mind?”

They're in Keith's dorm on his bed. Keith leaning against the wall in the corner, and Lance being a pain in the ass laying sprawled out and as in the way as he could get.

Lance has that glint in his eye that spells out horrible, horrible things for Keith, so he intervenes when the other boy opens his mouth. “Keep in mind I am only nineteen and I really don't plan on doing anything stupid and illegal.” The glint immediately dies.

A pout. A huff. A mumble of, “you're boring.”

“You should have gone to the robotics competition with Hunk and Pidge then.”

He huffs again. Keith basks in the newly found silence for only a few moments. 

Lance suddenly launches himself into a sitting position. “YOU’RE NINETEEN?” He shrieks.

Keith winces at the volume. “Mhm.”

Lance is sputtering, mouth agape as he searches for his words. “Since when?”

Brows furrowing, Keith responds, “The 23rd.”

That somehow makes Lance look even more flabbergasted. 

“THAT’S ALMOST A MONTH AGO!” Lance is glaring now, as he reaches and grabs Keith's covered arm and throws himself off the bed, dragging Keith with him. “What the fuck, Lance!”

“We're going to my apartment and I'm making you some authentic McClain birthday cuisine you soggy waffle iron.”

“How can the waffle iron get soggy?” Which is a completely valid question in Keith's opinion.

“Not important. I'm going to feed you fantastic birthday food and you are going to feel my overwhelming anger at the fact you didn't mention your birthday.”

And so that's what they did.

When Pidge and Hunk got back from the robotics competition that they totally won, Keith got a swift punch to his arm and a Disappointed Mom Friend™ lecture.

He appreciated it.

__________

Keith's been working at Voltron: Bar and Grill since he first started college and has been doing a fine job in his opinion. It took a little while to convince the owners to let him wear long sleeves and gloves while waiting tables though. He spewed off a better version of “I have horrible attachment issues and anxiety over soulmarks” that he barely remembers at this point and they finally relented.

The restaurant itself is fairly big, it's space themed and has an arcade tucked in the far back of the building. There's a half-wall separating the two halves of the dining area that different waiting staff take care of, and a bar somewhere between the two. Most of the drinks and meals they serve have some sort of space theme too. (The coolest drink, based solely on how it looks, is The Red Lion. At least that's what Keith thinks.)

Even with his introverted nature and his aversion to touch, Keith is a damn fine waiter. He usually gets pretty large tips, although sometimes it takes everything in him not to beat certain customers to a bloody pulp. All in all, that's probably normal for most people.

That's why when his astronomy TA strolls in, arm around a very familiar someone, Keith's a little surprised. 

He'd been hosting at the time, probably looking dead on his feet despite his best efforts, when he looks up and sees Shiro with a fairly small person with dirty blonde hair as they step inside the building. Instead of his usual conversation starter  
of “Welcome to Voltron, how many are in your party?” Keith lets out a tired and shocked, “Pidge?”

Shiro brought his gaze up from the Pidge look alike next to him at Keith's exclamation. The pair looked at him strangely for a moment when the voice that was decidedly not Pidge’s piped up. “Matt actually,” he paused as he observed Keith's blank expression, “I'm not gonna take offense for being mistaken for my sister because you look absolutely horrible.”

“Sorry. Finals are coming up and I just had the literal worst table I've ever served.” Keith sighed.

The looks of immense pity and understanding are almost overwhelming.

“Table for two, then?” Keith says after a moment, reaching under the host podium to grab two menus when they nod. 

Matt and Shiro follow Keith as he leads them to the right side of the restaurant, stopping at a small booth.

“So you're good friends?” Keith says as they sit down. He's a little offended when they burst out laughing.

Shiro finally calms down enough to answer. “Keith, buddy, Matt’s my soulmate. The owner of the mark you see at least twice a week.” He's pointing at the right side of his neck, the place where Keith knows there's a golden flower blooming on his skin. Matt’s still cackling.

Heat crawls its way onto Keith's face and he asks them what they'd like to drink. Bidding them a temporary farewell, Keith goes and gets two sodas and slides them onto the table. He turns to go when Shiro speaks up. “You feeling alright, Keith? You really don't look good at all.” 

“Honestly? No. I'm exhausted, but I just need to make it to ten so it should be fine.” Keith waves off the other’s worry easily. The TA doesn't look convinced, rather, he snorts.

“You don't look fine. You should at least take a break.” It was Matt who responded this time. He starts to shake his head when Shiro speaks again. “You have finals coming up. You really look like you could take a break, Keith.”

The weariness Keith had been pushing to the back of his mind rears its ugly head and he slouches, letting out a sigh.

“Yeah, fine. I'll go get Allura. I have enough tables to deal with tonight.” Keith quickly makes his way to the back get his boss, Allura.

Allura is a strong woman, with stunning blue eyes and magical hair she dyes white. Keith is looking for her white hair tied high into a bun, it's the easiest feature of hers to find. He manages to catch her as she's walking away from the dish station in the kitchens with her empty hands reaching into her apron to grab her notepad and pen.

The moment she sees him she heads straight for him, concern in her eyes and her free hand reaching up to touch his forehead. Even in his tired state, Keith reaches up with his gloved hand and stops the offending limb before it can touch him, and she immediately pulls it back, but the concern hasn't faded from her eyes. “Keith, dear, are you not feeling well? Should you head back to your dorm and get some rest?” She frets. 

“No, I'm just a bit tired,” he says, shaking his head, “I was actually looking for you. Do you think you could cover a table for me?” 

“Of course! Finish up anything you need to do and head to Coran’s office and rest up. I don't think I want you heading to your dorm alone in this state.” Allura let's Keith lead her to Matt and Shiro's table before he goes to check on other customers.

Some tables are just finishing up, and Keith gets the checks quickly, sending families or groups out as swiftly as he can. As he clears the tables of dirty dishes, he stuffs the tip money into his apron pocket. 

Keith is just on his way out of the dish station when there's a loud crash from the dining area. Swiftly going to investigate, Keith sees Allura, her hand held limply between her and Shiro, his real hand also outstretched. The pair are looking at one another in shock, a new mark has formed on the opposite side of Shiro's neck, a bundle of three magenta flowers. On Allura’s own neck, a black hydrangea speckled with stars has grown. It matches the flower on Matt’s neck. 

Shiro and Allura are romantic soulmates. Keith didn't even know it was possible for someone to have more than one. 

Quicker than Keith could really process what was happening, Matt's shoots up from his seat, extending his hand out and touching Allura’s arm. She whips her head to look at Matt, watching as the same bundle of magenta flowers on Shiro's neck bloom on Matt's. A flower of gold can be seen on Allura's dark skin now.

“It's… you.” Shiro sounds so shocked, he's staring at Allura like the three of them are alone. His expression is one of wonder and joy and most of all, shock. Matt isn't much different. The whole restaurant has stopped, everyone who can see is watching. 

“We… we didn't think…” Matt tried but he couldn't finish his thought before Allura cut in, “Could we go somewhere more private and… talk? About this?” Her voice was soft, like if she spoke to loudly the marks inked in their skin would vanish.

The two men stood up and stumbled after Allura into an office. Moments later, Coran, the other owner of Voltron stepped out, and announced that they would be closing for the night, asking everyone to please finish their meals.

They all left with little complaint after they finished eating.

Keith got a ride to his dorm from Coran instead of Allura. 

He's gonna need to talk to Shiro in class on Tuesday.

__________

It turns out that Shiro, Matt, and Allura have a rare form of romantic soulbond.They themselves don't really know what they want their relationship to entail as of yet, since Allura just met the other two. They're working on it.

For whatever reason though, from them on out Shiro and Matt have started hanging out with Pidge, Hunk, Lance and Keith. 

This gave Keith a chance to learn about them. Shiro served in the military, which is where he lost his right arm and got the pink scar over his nose. Now he's working on getting a degree to teach high school astronomy. Matt is nearly as big of a tech geek as Pidge, and his own major is biochemical engineering. Once Allura is introduced to the group, it's like she'd always been there.

Shiro seamlessly slips into a place Keith didn't know could be filled. 

It's good.

__________

Keith had been so careful. So, so careful. He always wore long sleeves, always had his black gloves. Finals had destroyed him, he was a tired, unobservant husk of himself. He just had one more test. And then he was done. Just his astronomy final during his Friday class.

He forgot his gloves. 

Keith was so goddamned tired that he forgot his gloves. 

He didn't even notice.

Most of the other students in his class (including Lance, who had to take off for a final for his other major right after he finished this one) had left. Finishing his exam, he walks up to Shiro who's collecting and looking over them before the professor. He holds out his test for Shiro to take. And their fingers brush. That itself isn't unusual, b cause Keith wore normal gloves now. But, again, he forgot his gloves.

Time feels like it stops. His right side tingles and he feels a wave of complete peace wash over him. Calm engulfs his fried nerves, leaves him just staring at his exam in his and Shiro's hands. 

It doesn't take long for reality to rear it's ugly head.

Keith blinks the fog from his head and rips his hand away. Casting a quick glance at Shiro's face before he turns, all he can feel is panic as Shiro starts to talk, “Keith wait-” 

He doesn't wait. Keith bolts from the room, paying no mind to Shiro calling after him.

MKeith breaks out into a run when he steps outside of his lecture hall. His ears are ringing, everything is too bright, and he's suffocating-

There's a tingle in his side. A hesitant question conveyed through feelings of worry and guilt. 

Are you okay?

It feels like no time has passed since his body went on autopilot and his mind shut down, but he's standing in front of his dorm room, short of breath. Against his will, the foreign emotions pull him out of his panic attack. Tears prick in Keith's eyes as he rests his forehead against his door, a white-knuckled grip on the knob.

He's not okay.

Keith waits until Shiro's wave of emotion eases off before he steps into his room. A fresh wave of anxiety swamps him as he drops his bag on the ground. With shaking hands, Keith lifts his shirt and looks at the new mark painted along his skin. Three black hydrangeas, with small constellations dotting the petals, had taken shape on his side.

Feeling sick, Keith covers the new soulmark, and crawls into bed, ignoring the vibrations coming from his bag.

At work, Keith avoids Allura like the plague. He hasn't answered any messages from Shiro, even though he is responding to the other three. Holiday break has started and he has no reason to leave his dorm for anything other than work so he doesn't.

Lance and Hunk had been relentless in their questions about Shiro in the beginning, but have backed off almost completely. Pidge asked a grand total of once and never brought it up again. Perceptive as she is, Keith's not very surprised. 

It's been almost a week since it had happened, it's Christmas Eve and Keith's working. Voltron isn't incredibly busy on holidays because a restaurant-slash-bar-slash-arcade isn't what people really imagine when they think of Christmas. Much to Keith's relief, Allura isn't working tonight. No doubt if she was he'd be cornered and talked to because of the lack of patrons dining tonight. 

The night was going fantastically if Keith was being honest. He'd get off work in about two hours, from then he was going to ride the bus so he could spend time with his mom. The ride was about three hours, and he'd reach the small town in Arizona pretty quickly. 

Then, his night was going a little less fantastically when all of his friends strolled into the restaurant. All other employees were busy cleaning in the kitchens so that left Keith to go see who had entered. 

The “customer service” smile he'd been wearing falls.

The group just kind of stares at him, no one speaks for a while. It's awkward, especially because they're in the entryway to the restaurant. Pidge's look is one of mostly disappointment. Matt just seems worried, not for Keith though, for Shiro, who looks more guilty than anything. Hunks soft expression is one of pity, Keith probably hates that the most. The blue of Allura's eyes seems duller, and she looks exhausted. Lance's, is oddly blank. Which is the most concerning of the group. If it hadn't been clear before that Keith couldn't handle confrontation, it had become crystal clear.

“Keith, I'm giving you the rest of the night off. I assume you have your own clothes in the locker room?” Allura is the one to break the spell, and Keith actually flinches when her voice cuts through the tense atmosphere. Keith nods, eyes boring a hole into the ground. He doesn't want to look at them.

“Good. Go get changed, we hope you'll join us,” Allura spoke softly, as if speaking too loudly would scare him off for good. Though it sounded like a request, Keith understood that it was a command. He was joining them for dinner. No other option.


	2. attempt 2: electric boogaloo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the second attempt i had at this story, this time a bit closer to the "canon" one!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wrote this one also in semptember of 2017, after i had cranked out all 8000 words of the original, i decided it wasn't quite what i wanted and i made this, which got much closer to the actual fic i would write. it didn't get nearly as long as the other one lmao

Less than five percent of the population are those few, unlucky people who don't have any soulbonds.

God, Keith wished he was a part of that small percentage.

Especially now, when delicate, tan, fingers brush Keith's own in passing on the street. Small and insignificant that would have been, until the telltale buzz under the skin on Keith's neck happened. The wave of foreign emotions, shock, anxiety, hope, a tentative joy, so sudden and forceful that Keith almost stopped walking. Casting a brief glance over his shoulder, he sees the back of a figure who's gone rigid as a mark no doubt mirroring Keith's own appears on his neck. Walking becomes easier for Keith as the tingle vanishes, and the fog shrouding his brain lifts. Panic is slow to come as the other man, his soulmate, holy fuck, blinks and shakes his head.

Gaining his wits, Keith turns away and keeps walking in the opposite direction of the boy, acting as if nothing of significance had occurred. 

Cradling the coffee he had bought just a few minutes earlier with both hands rather than one, Keith ignores the frantic calls of a boy trying to find his new soulmate. 

Keith ignores the feelings of panic and desperation that are not his own pouring from his new soul connection.

He ignores the guilt prickling in the back of his head, and keeps walking.

There are three different marks forever laced into Keith's skin. He's memorized the flowers on both sides of his waist; the deep blue-violet hollyhock surrounded with a vague outline of stars and galaxies on his left has been ingrained on him from the moment he was born. On his right, the dark black dahlia flowers’ pointed tips curl into one another, constellations dotting the petals, that one he got when he was only about thirteen.

The newest addition to the marks marring his pale skin is one with a blood-red rose, rich and lovely, with bright blue forget-me-nots gently curling around it. Whitecaps of waves and a small lick of flames lapping gently at the edges of the petals.

Keith spends nearly two hours once he gets home glaring at the mark on his neck in the mirror, a cold sense of dread weighing at his bones. Every once in awhile, he'll feel a tiny prick of sadness that is so completely out of place in his frenzied thoughts it can only be that of his romantic poking and prodding at the matching mark on his own neck.

Anxiety churns in his gut, rolling and boiling the longer he stares at the new mark.

Without fully thinking about it, Keith finds himself finally opening the cabinet mirror he's been staring into and grabbing a small container filled with pale makeup. The concealer is specifically made for covering up soulmarks, and is mostly water resistant and hard to rub off with just fingers. Although it is possible to scrub it off, it's much easier to use makeup wipes. Keith had bought the plastic jar to be prepared for if he ever did find his soulmates, a purchase that he is incredibly grateful of as he covers his fingertips in product.

Hesitant fingers pause before making contact with the mark. Since the makeup isn't thick enough to fully remove skin-to-skin contact, Keith's soulmate will feel his emotions. He'd had the option to buy a makeup brush and elected not to, not thinking about the fact that his soulbond would open when he applied the concealer. 

Huffing in irritation at himself for not planning ahead, Keith starts to quickly smear on makeup, feeling the walls on his mind fall. He tries to keep his mind void of any strong feelings, but the tension he feels is overbearing. Unsurprisingly, his soulmate opens up his half of the bond in response to the wave of anxiety Keith threw at him, carefully sending feelings of hope and concern, hints of dejection and doubt stinging at the edges. Keith feels more panic bubble up inside of him, guilt tasting like bile in his mouth as he quickly finishes blending the makeup onto his skin. Ripping his hand away from his neck, he tries to force the swell of foreign emotions out of his head.

Water washes away the excess makeup on Keith's fingers when he collects himself. He stares into the mirror, seeing nothing but pale skin. The tension in his shoulders has relaxed some after he regained what faint bit or normalcy he could grasp for. He stands and steps out too the too bright lighting of his bathroom. 

The apartment is small, a small kitchen tucked into the far corner from the door, his bed is shoved against the wall separating the main room from the bathroom, and between the two areas are a few beanbag chairs. Near the chairs are heaps of art supplies and an easel, folded and leaning against the wall. Papers hang loosely from the plaster, and many sketches are wrinkled and piled somewhere on the floor.

An itch in his fingers to do something pushed Keith into the corner, where he snatched up a sketch pad and pencil. Sketching is the only way Keith can calm his jittery nerves. Without really thinking about it, Keith's gently marking patterns out around the border of the page. Swooping and sharp lines gently curling in and spreading to the center of the page. Soulmates on the mind, the swooping edges  
Slowly evolve into flowers. Hollyhocks, forget-me-nots, and dahlias curl into one another, a small meadow of flowers bordered by a sharp and dangerous tips, not quite touching the softly drawn petals. 

More often than not, when Keith had a dilemma it was soulmark related. Relationships mostly rely on soulbonds for most people. Of course everyone makes plenty of incredibly close friends, or even lovers, with those they don't share bonds with. For most, you're not complete without your soulmates. 

For Keith it's better if he can keep his distance.

So, when problems with his soulmarks arise, he often finds himself idly drawing or painting the marks he has ingrained into his skin. Finding some sort of outlet to let out the emotions he doesn't share. He's always done it, and he probably always will.

Working at Voltron: Bar and Grill has been really all Keith does after he's freshly graduated. His job isn't really for the money, although that is a small bonus. No, it's mostly so he can do something other than stay locked away in his apartment painting. Even an introvert like himself who often finds himself wanting the company of only his paints, being alone constantly would drive him crazy.

He also gets discounts on arcade tokens. That's definitely pretty cool. 

The restaurant is fairly well known. It has a charming space theme and the aforementioned arcade. There are two halves to the building, which makes serving much easier. Tonight, Keith is serving on the right wing, which also happens to be the wing with the arcade.

The start of a new semester is fast approaching for the nearby college, Altea University. The university is well known for its science programs, Keith himself is going to be majoring in astronomy there. With the start of a new semester, comes a wave of young nerds. Most of which flock to Voltron because it's a cool, space-themed restaurant and bar with an arcade. It's practically a beacon for them.

So, it really shouldn't be very surprising when a beautiful, tall, tan boy with flowers on his neck struts in. Trailing after him with fond looks of exasperation, are two others. One is a massive man with dark skin and even darker hair, kept out of his eyes with an orange headband. The other is a short girl with a mess of strawberry blonde hair.

Glancing around to see if there's literally any other goddamn employee, Keith feels dread settle in the pit of his stomach when he sees that no one else is available. Groaning internally, Keith hesitantly walks towards the small group, towards his soulmate.

“Welcome to Voltron, how large is your party tonight?”

Lance looks up when he hears a voice that is simultaneously as smooth as it is rough. As he looks up, his eyes immediately zero in on the right side of the stranger's neck, seeing nothing but pale skin. That's something he's been doing for about the last week, ever since he brushed against his soulmate in passing, he searches for the neck painted with a deep red rose and forget-me-nots.

“Just the three of us.”


End file.
